For customers still unsure whether they’re ready to make the switch to an all-electric vehicle, Ford is sweetening the pot.
Today, the company launched a new initiative called the “Ford Power Promise,” in which it will provide a suite of benefits to customers who buy or lease a new EV. And chief among them is a complimentary home charger for all new customers, as well as the costs of standard installation.
The charger that’s being offered is the company’s Ford Charge Station Pro, a $1,310 Level 2 charger that comes with a standard CCS1 connector. Ford declined to put a monetary value on the installation but said it would cover costs up to 60 amps of power and 80 feet of wire run. Customers who need to upgrade their home electrical panel before the installation, however, will need to cover those costs themselves.
So since the majority of people will probably need the panel upgrade this is an empty offer for those that won’t be willing to spend $2k+ for the upgrade.
The only way I was able to get a charger installed was from my utility company’s rebate if I used their rate22 for the charger. So they paid to install the new meter and charger but I had to buy the charger. Since it has its own meter it doesn’t affect my home’s panel limit. I went with OpenEVSE for their ease of repairability and upgrades. I can swap any part out in a matter of minutes.
Came here to mention that they better be hooking me up with a panel upgrade too, which I know they won’t.
Educated guess here, but yes. Your panel might only be designed to handle 200A and a bulk of that is typically used by your home already, primarily your major appliances and heating/cooling.
Further complicating matters for many Americans are HOAs, especially those with communal parking separated from the homes. Not only would I have to upgrade my panel, I’d have to pay to install a feed to my parking spaces. Thankfully for my region the law gives me the right to install this even if the HOA doesn’t cooperate, but laws vary and some people will have a very uphill battle.
“up to” 60 amps per the original snippet means you could do less if a load calculation needs it. Really, damn near any panel installed in the last several decades can take an additional 240V 20A circuit, which is still a lot of juice if you math out the kind of use you can get over a year.
